By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
Dowagiac Board of Education, meeting at Central Middle School, and City Council, meeting at City Hall, Monday night approved a joint ownership agreement for a fiber optic network throughout the community.
Running an additional set of fiber strands to accommodate the city only increased project costs incrementally.
The consultant, Ancomm Telecommunications Inc., drafted a plan to utilize mostly city poles for the network.
City Manager William H. Nelson Jr. said, "At this point, it appears that if the projects were constructed separately, each would cost $250,000 to $300,000.
These proportions are based on the number of dedicated fibers run for each organization. The Wide Area Network, or WAN, excludes Kincheloe and Sister Lakes, which will be addressed separately by the school district. Total cost of the project is $307,578.23, or $169,168.03 charged to the city and $138,410.20 borne by the school district.